COVID – 19 updates

Update 26 – 25/05/2020

Dear MGC Students, Parents/Carers and Staff,
We look forward to welcoming students studying Unit 1 and 3 subjects tomorrow. Our teachers will run through some slides at the start of Period 1  reinforcing many of the points made in the document provided last Friday in Update 25. The most important message though is about something you can do before you get to school. Students must stay at home if they are experiencing any cold or flu like symptoms such as sore throat, fever or cough. Similarly, if these symptoms develop during the school day we will ask students to attend First Aid and then ask a parent/carer to attend school to pick students up.

Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 25 – 22/05/2020

Update 24 – 20/05/2020

Dear MGC Student, Parents/Carers, Teachers and Staff,

It has been a little while since the last update, so I thought I would let you know about the plans we have been making with the return to school from next Tuesday.

On Monday, we surveyed our senior students about their feelings regarding the return to school. One of the understandable concerns expressed by students was the likelihood of contracting COVID-19 themselves, as well as the risk of them contracting it and passing it on to friends and family members. In light of these concerns, I have attached a snippet from the Chief Health Officer of Victoria, Professor Brett Sutton, regarding the reasons for reopening schools at this time. I would also draw your attention to the data available here, which shows that people aged under 20 years have had far fewer numbers of confirmed cases of COVID-19, compared to other age groups. Despite the very low risk to students and staff, our number one priority is to further reduce the chances of the transmission of COVID-19 at MGC.

There will be further information in a newsfeed on Friday which will have more confirmed plans.

Stage 1 – From Tuesday 26th May

We look forward to welcoming students studying Units 1 and 3 subjects on this date.

• We have furthered our plans for Year 10 students, some of whom will need to stay on site for the school day. For those students, they should head to their normal timetabled Year 10 rooms, to be supervised by their usual teacher. If the teacher is absent, students can head to the Library. All students will participate in their Year 10 lessons via Microsoft Teams.
• Any Year 7-9 students that have been participating in the on-site supervision arrangements will also transition to being supervised by their usual teachers in their normal timetabled classroom, or head to the Library if the teacher is absent.
• All lessons in Stage 1 will continue with the existing remote learning timetable.
• To reduce crowding across the school:
  • classroom doors in the main building will be kept open to reduce the number of people in corridors
  • altered arrangements will be in place for the General Office, Cafe, VCE Study Centre and Library to reduce the number of people in these places
  • some teachers will have moved their office, with a new staff office in Room 105

Stage 2 – From Monday 9th June

We look forward to welcoming all students back on this date.

• Further to the arrangements around crowding outlined above, there will be staggered starting times, lesson times and finishing times for Year 7-9 and Year 10-12 students. This timetable will be released when finalised on Friday. Part of the rationale for the staggers at the start and end of the day is spreading the load of MGC students across Bridge Road trams, which was a concern highlighted when we surveyed senior students earlier in the week. The staggers in the middle of the school day will help to reduce crowds of students in the corridors and stairwells, and allow time for students to wash or sanitise their hands between classes.

Other measures

• Some students and staff, including teachers, will wear face masks when they return to school. We ask that all members of the MGC community respect the desires of those members of our community who choose to protect themselves and others inthis way.
• The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) has advised that a ‘venue density rule’ of no more than one person per four square metres is not appropriate or practical in classrooms or corridors, nor maintaining 1.5 metres between students during classroom activities. We do ask that all members of the MGC community practice physical distancing wherever they can, and students must keep a minimum 1.5 metre distance with their teachers and staff wherever possible.

Student Free Days

There is a statewide Student Free Day scheduled for next Monday 25th May.

Our MGC Report Writing Day has been rescheduled from Friday 12th June to Friday 19th June.

Uniform

Bob Stewart is open to purchase winter uniform – please have a look at the website at http://www.bobstewart.com.au/.

We will have further information about the Parents’ Association Second Hand Uniform Shop early next week.

Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 23 – 14/05/2020

Dear MGC Parents/Carers, Students and Staff,

Thank you for all your support during these past few weeks of remote learning.
Following advice from the Victorian Chief Health Officer, the Victorian Government has advised that schools can begin a staged return to on-site schooling.

To support all school staff to prepare for this transition, Monday 25th May will be a pupil-free day.

Stage 1: Tuesday 26th May to Friday 5th June
In the first stage, students in Prep, Grade 1 and Grade 2, senior secondary (Year 11 and 12 VCE) students and all students in specialist schools will return to school from Tuesday 26 May:

• At Melbourne Girls’ College we will retain our existing remote learning timetable, with 60 minute lessons and minimum 30 minute breaks between classes
• Year 10 students undertaking VCE studies should also attend school for those classes
• Year 10 MGC students that cannot travel between their homes and school in the break times on these days will be able to stay on site for the entire school day. Further details regarding this will be released next week.
• For those students who cannot be supervised at home and vulnerable children, the existing model of on-site schooling will remain in place during this stage. If there are any families that need to have their children supervised at MGC that have not been participating in the existing arrangements, please email me (brent.houghton@mgc.vic.edu.au)

Stage 2: From Tuesday 9th June
In the second stage of our return to on-site schooling, all other year levels will return to school from Tuesday 9 June.
Attendance
Once a year level has returned, all students will be expected to attend school as normal. This means if you choose to keep your child/children home after their year level has returned to on-site schooling, we can no longer support their learning from home.
This does not apply to children who need to be absent for health or medical reasons. For those families, we ask that parents complete this form so that we can begin the process of making a plan with you. An Assistant Principal or Year Level Leader will then make contact.
This same approach is being taken by all government schools in Victoria.
Cleaning, hygiene & health advice
To support the health and wellbeing of all our students and staff, our school will continue an enhanced cleaning routine and will encourage frequent hand washing.
If you child is ill or is feeling unwell, they must not attend school. They must remain home and seek medical advice.
While the Victorian Chief Health Officer has advised that students will not be required to maintain physical distancing at school, there will be a number of important changes to our school operations, consistent with health advice. This will apply until further notice. I will provide more detail about our local school context as soon as possible, but it is important to note that changes will include:

• restrictions on access to the school site for anyone other than immediate school staff and students
• the way we conduct parent-teacher meetings and interviews
• potentially staggered lesson times and other arrangements to reduce crowding in corridors, stairwells and large gathering  places in the school.

We understand that some families may feel anxious about this move back to classroom teaching and learning. I can assure you that this decision has been taken on the basis of the best health advice available to our state.
More information about the return to school and coronavirus (COVID-19) can be found on the Department’s website, which will continue to be updated: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/department/Pages/coronavirus.aspx
Thank you for your continued support and patience during this time. We look forward to welcoming our students back to the classroom.
10,000 Step Challenge
On a much lighter note, I would like to congratulate the 98 students and staff that completed the 10,000 Step Challenge last Friday, winning points for the House Cup in the process. Over 1.2 million steps were recorded by these students and staff, a fantastic effort! You can see the names in the wheels attached.
The draw for $50 gift card prizes will take place tomorrow (Friday 15th May) at 10am on MGC All Students on Microsoft Teams.
Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 22 – 12/05/2020

Dear MGC Students, Parents/Carers and Staff,

As you have likely seen on TV this morning or followed in the media, the State Government has announced a staggered return to face-to-face schooling:

• There will be a statewide Student Free Day on Monday 25^th May.
• Unit 1 and 3 classes will run face-to-face from Tuesday 26^th May. Year 10 students that have Unit 1 classes will be able to attend these face-to-face classes. Year 10 students who need to stay at school for the entire school day on days when they have Unit 1 classes will be able to do so.
• Classes in all year levels will run face to face from Tuesday 9^th June.

When we have further information about these arrangements, we will let you know.
Further information can be found in the Premier’s Media Release here.

Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 21 – 01/05/2020

Dear MGC Parents, Carers, Students, Teachers and Staff,

Internet Devices – Can we help?

I hope that you have had a positive experience with remote learning this week. We know that internet problems cause frustrations for many students and families at this time. Today we have received delivery of internet enabled tablet devices (that can be used as a Telstra wi-fi hotspot) from the Department of Education and Training, to support families with internet provision. Separately, through an arrangement with one of our technology suppliers, we have been able to source Telstra SIM cards with significant data limits. Our team has already contacted those families that indicated at the end of Term 1 that they have problems with internet connections and have arranged for some of these devices to be used by families (at no charge) during remote learning.

If your family is experiencing one of the following issues:
– no internet at home
– many people trying to use the family wi-fi at once causing internet congestion
– approaching data limits on your phone/home internet
– other internet problems and the use of a device or SIM card will assist your child’s learning, please complete this form so that we can see if we can assist (at no charge). The form can be completed by a parent/carer or student.

We will make contact with any people that complete the form, next week.
I hope you and your family have an enjoyable weekend. Stay safe and stay warm!

Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 19 – 23/04/2020

Dear MGC Students, Parents, Carers, Teachers and Staff,

60 minute lessons from Monday 27^th April
After much deliberation, and based on feedback from students and teachers, we have decided to reduce the length of lessons during the period of remote learning from 75 to 60 minutes. This decision is made in the interests of learning and wellbeing for both students and teachers.

Students completed a survey in class yesterday, and there were many comments regarding tiredness and screen fatigue being a challenge in remote learning. This is in accord with feedback received from teachers and parents as well. Our change to 60 minute lessons is consistent with advice from the Department of Education and Training regarding expectations for face to face teaching time during remote learning, as well as being in line with the approach taken by other schools, including our colleagues in the City Edge network.

The only lessons that may in some circumstances be longer than 60 minutes are VCE assessments, which may extend up to 75 minutes. If a VCE assessment is going to be longer than 60 minutes, this will be communicated to students at least one week in advance of the scheduled assessment.

During tomorrow’s Student Free Day, teachers will be adjusting their plans for this term, to recognise the fact that we cannot hope to cover the same amount of content at the same pace during this term. The speed at which some teachers have moved during some lessons and the amount of work required outside of classes was another concern reflected in the student survey. The good news is that through changes that we have made at MGC as well as those proposed by the VCAA, there will be more time to cover the content needed this year. I know this is particularly on the minds of students studying VCE Unit 3/4 subjects this year. These changes include:

• The extension of semester 1 to the end of term 2 at MGC
• No NAPLAN for Year 7 and 9 students in May
• No Year 10 or 11 exams in June
• Unit 3/4 exams to occur in December rather than late October/early November
• A review of all VCE Study Designs by the VCAA for Unit 4, to reduce, where possible, school-based assessment tasks such as SACs. We understand these changes to Study Designs will be released over coming days and will be communicated to families shortly thereafter.

We have made a further change to our assessment protocols, with students in Years 7 to 9 completing only one Learning Task for each subject this term.

We are going to keep the structure of the day as closely aligned as possible to a normal school day, as this will allow for meaningful breaks for students and teachers. The break between each lesson will be at least 30 minutes, which will allow students and teachers to eat, relax or exercise between the times they need to be at their screens. The lesson times can be accessed below.

Finally, I’d like to thank those families that have shared their experiences with me and other school leaders over the past week or so. I shared some of these with a grateful staff on Tuesday afternoon, who in turn wanted me to thank our students for the ways in which they have shown patience and resilience in adapting to this new style of learning. We hope that this change, which we believe reflects the needs of our students, will further improve the remote learning experience for all.

Brent Houghton
Acting Principal 2020

Update 18 – 21/04/2020

Dear MGC Community,
Welcome to Term 2 from the Wellbeing team!
As you are aware, this term is looking very different from what we are used to! Although we are all learning and working from home, the Wellbeing team is available to support students, parents and the school community to remain connected and well.
At present, we are able to offer assistance via email and phone contact. If you would like support or information, you can request wellbeing support by emailing your Year Level Leader or an Assistant Principal at MGC. You are also welcome to contact us directly via our contact details listed below. Please be aware that parent/carer consent is required for individual phone consultations with students in line with the Child Safe standards. Although we will work to ensure the confidentiality of our discussions wherever possible, it is preferred that a parent or carer is at home when calls take place.
Please note that this is not a crisis service and will be staffed as much as possible between 9am – 3pm during term time. If you have a crisis or an emergency, please call 000.
In addition, the Wellbeing team is able to provide a range of resources that cover general mental health and wellbeing issues as well as information that is specific to COVID-19. We will continue to share new support options and helpful resources that we discover, but please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have a specific question or need. We are also continuing to liaise with external agencies who support our students in the wider community.
Warm regards,
Brittany, Danielle and Kate
Contacting Us
Brittany Killer (10020411@mgc.vic.edu.au) Monday – Friday
Danielle Floyd (09473924@mgc.vic.edu.au) Monday – Friday
Kate McLean (08397571@mgc.vic.edu.au) Wednesday – Friday
Phone: 94288955 (Option 2). In the climate of remote learning, phone calls and voicemails may not be received immediately. While we endeavour to respond promptly, if you have not received a response within 48 hours during the school week, please email or contact the General Office.

Update 16 – 16/04/2020